Scan barcode
mmariericker's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
“A female protagonist made the stories more inspiring than voyeuristic. It was so much fun to write about who you could be. From then on penny’s stories centered around women and girls. There wasn’t even a special trick. You wrote it exactly as you would for a guy, but you made pain thresholds higher since girls have to put up with more in the world and give them more empathy, which makes everything riskier.”
“The homework doesn’t end. It’s piles and piles of emotional homework forever if you ever want to qualify as a grown-up.”
Minor: Sexual assault
marisamidori's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Minor: Sexual assault
internationalreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child death, Drug use, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual content
leffel's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Moderate: Sexual assault
mims_book_nook's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Minor: Sexual assault
alenka's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Sexual assault
spellboundchapters's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
2nd read: May 2022 — 3.5 stars
“Over the years, Penny inhaled the classics — Ready Player One, Dune, and Ender’s Game, though it wasn’t until she was introduced to Messiah, ironically from a guy who was the worst dude in the history of dudes, that she realized sci-fi didn’t have to be so… boy. (…) From then on Penny’s stories centered around women and girls. There wasn’t even a special trick. You wrote it exactly as you would for a guy, but you made pain thresholds higher since girls have to put up with more in the world and give them more empathy, which makes everything riskier.”
Yeppp, I still like it as much as I did the first time 🥺
Yes, Penny is deeply flawed, but I always find flawed characters way more interesting to follow, and I can see a lot of past me in her… I’m still unsure if it’s a good thing or not. 😂 And I love the character development she gets throughout the book! The moment where she bonds with Jude and Mallory at the beach is my favourite scene 🥰
I loved to witness Sam and Penny’s friendship/romance blossom, and Mary H.K. Choi writes teenagers/young adults so perfectly! I feel like authors often struggle to make their dialogs sound realistic, but she always nails it — they didn’t sound cheesy nor cringy at all, and neither did the text messages. I think a lot of us will resonate with the way that this book focuses on virtual relationships, and how you can sometimes be more yourself when talking to someone via messages rather than in person. (Or maybe that's just us socially awkward butterflies.)
“So yeah no IRL for me
Why break the fourth wall?”
“No point
We’re perfect in here”
I have nothing to say about Sam except that he’s perfect. And that I want to taste his pastries (yes, if you can bake you're automatically very attractive to me).
Graphic: Mental illness and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Alcoholism, Rape, Sexual assault, and Alcohol
Minor: Racism
ki_stars's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Minor: Sexual assault
allzen_nochill's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Rape and Sexual assault
Minor: Alcoholism and Drug use
oleander_milk's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Moderate: Rape and Sexual assault
Minor: Alcoholism, Miscarriage, and Racism